Marcos: Senate leadership change won't impact legislative agenda
President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. (Mark Balmores)
President Marcos is confident that the leadership change in the Senate will not affect his administration's legislative agenda.
Marcos said he does not see any problems in terms of the legislative agenda after Senator Francis "Chiz" Escudero was replaced by Senator Vicente "Tito" Sotto on Monday, Sept. 8.
He stressed that the change in leadership was an "internal matter" and the senators will still continue to do their job.
"I do not actually see any problem in terms of the legislative agenda that the executive and the legislature have agreed to undertake for the next Congress," Marcos said during the Kapihan with the Media on Tuesday, Sept. 9, before departing Phnom Penh, Cambodia.
"So, I am confident. The Senate knows how to organize itself. The Senate also knows how to do the work," he added.
"And if Senator Sotto is now the SP again, then I do not see that it will change very much from what our agenda has – that we had agreed upon when Senator Chiz was SP," Marcos further said.
The President also expressed that the change in the Senate leadership came in no surprise as there has been a movement leading to the election of a new Senate President.
"The change of leadership is an internal matter between the senators. It has been… I think… I mean, you have all been reporting on this at alam naman ninyo na mayroong talagang galaw (you know that there is really a movement) that has been going on for the last at least a month na – that would bring us to this change of leadership," Marcos said.
Escudero stepped down from the post, following criticisms that stemmed from controversies surrounding the government’s flood control program.